The Songbird
by LovelyLiterate
Summary: Miyu lived in a cage most of her life. He opened the door and saved her in more than one way. [ItachixOC] Rewrite of my old story!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Ohhhh goodness! I'm so nervous yet excited for this story. I've got big plans!**

**Of course, as always, I only own the OC.**

**If you feel like it, please leave me a review or a fav! ****Regardless if you're here from the old version or brand new to the story, I really hope you will enjoy it!**

* * *

"_Miyu?"_

_There was a soft voice riding the wind. Gray eyes looked at the direction where it had come from._

_Someone is calling for her. And she can't make them worry._

_Small hands, once intent on picking the best wildflowers they could find, abandon their task. A child stands up and begins to make her way to the familiar sound._

"_Miyu!" The voice called again in a louder, more urgent tone._

_She moves quicker and begins to run from outside and into the house where the voice seems to come from. She goes down the familiar long hallway of her home, her feet making pat-pat-pat noises against the hardwood floor as she does. Chocolate brown hair whips around her face as she rounds a corner and collides with a man. The crash causes her to fall backwards and she lands against the ground with a thud. Instantly tears form in the child's eyes at the harsh sensation and she sniffled, letting out a wail._

"_Ah, so there you are Miyu. Don't cry now." The man, with dark black hair and gray eyes, reaches down and pats her head gently. A smile appears on the girls face at the gesture and she lets out a small laugh, tears forgotten. He returns a smile back to the girl and calls out to someone else. "Miyu is over here!"_

"_Thank goodness!" The soft voice answers from deeper in the house. Again, the sound of running footsteps could be heard until a woman came into view. She had the same deep chocolate brown that the young girl did. She went directly to the girl and scooped her into her arm. The woman presses her forehead to her daughters head. "There's my little songbird! Were you outside again?"_

"_Yes!" Miyu answers her mother with a bright smile._

"_It's time for dinner, come on now." A warm sensation filled the young girls body as she was cradled. Her mother turned and headed back where she had come from, still holding her child tightly to her chest._

* * *

"Get up!"

An angry voice pierced through the dream and awoke a woman who had been asleep. Her eyes slid open slowly, narrowing them into a glare at the man who had spoiled the only time she felt the flicker of happiness. Miyu would have rather stayed in the dream world than to face this harsh reality once again.

_I hate you._ She wished he could hear what she was thinking.

"Come on bitch, you know what time it is."

_Fuck you._

She closed her eyes and laid back onto the floor. She didn't bother to move. She couldn't go very far even if she had the energy to do so and her body screamed in protest whenever she tried. There was a sound of metal against metal, and then the sharp screech of what the woman recognized as her barred door to her prison opening. The man stepped inside and approached her with confident strides.

"We need 407 and 611 today." Another voice called.

"Getting 407 now." The man that had entered her room called back.

_Die._

The man crouched and reached down, fumbling with a key in one hand, restraints in the other. He moved the key between his teeth and with a practiced hand, he managed to get both the woman's arms behind her back. She didn't put up any resistance, and the feeling of control had the man smirking. Her arms secure, he took back the key and unchained the wrist and ankles that connected the woman to the floor. With a yank, he pulled the girl up to her feet.

"You know, ever since they put that seal on you..." The guy trailed off, the same cocky smirk on his face, and raised a finger to the woman's neck. Her eyes flashed to stare all her hatred at him. At one point, that look would have at least unsettled him. But the woman before him now was not the woman she once was. Malnutrition, experiments, and seals had broken most of the now frail woman. The only thing that seemed to remain was the spirit in her eyes when she glared. But that wasn't enough to keep him away. He stepped forward to her, close enough that she could feel his breath on her neck.

_Fuck you. Fuck you. Fuck you._

"You've been a lot more fun to be around." He finished his sentence in a deeper, more suggestive voice. His finger trailed down her skin slowly, down to her chest.

"611 ready!" The voice from earlier had called again from a couple cells down.

"407 ready!" The man called back and then stepped away from the girl. He made a 'tsk' sound, staring at the girl. His expression was full of frustration for a moment, but it quickly changed back to his previous cocky grin. He then chuckled to himself, and pushed the girl to the entrance of the cell. The motion caused her to stumble on her weak legs. He just cackled.

"No matter, we can always have fun later."

_Die, die, die, die, die._

* * *

Something wasn't right.

The pushing, the prodding, the needles, the testing, the assholes that moved her around and eyed her like a piece of meat for them to take advantage of... Everything was the same as every other day she'd spent in this hell hole. She'd been returned and chained back to the floor a few hours earlier, but as she lay on the hard cement, a strange sensation in her gut told her that something was different. With what little energy she had, she shifted her body on the side, peering outside her cage to see if anything seemed out of the ordinary.

_The guard is still there... _Miyu thought as she tried to peer down the hallway. _Maybe it's my imagination?_

She heard what was going on first. A scream went into the air only to be cut off. The guard rushed to the sound. A thud. Sounds of a fight. More thuds followed. It did not take the intruders long. They infiltrated the base quickly, sweeping closer to the cells along the wall as the seconds ticked on. The sounds got closer and closer.

Her gray eyes slid shut, trying to focus on any signs of life she may hear. But all she could hear was two sets of footsteps as they drew near. The other prisoners around her had begun to either cry in fear or hope. They came to the front of her cell and they stopped moving. A pool of fear formed in the pit of her stomach, her body screaming for her to flee. But she pushed it away. What could she do anyways? Still connected to the floor by chains, she would have to accept whatever fate threw at her. She breathed in deeply to steady her emotions, forcing her eyes to stay shut. She would accept it. Even if that meant death. She lived an empty life anyways. That would be better than continuing this so-called life she lived as a captive.

_Come what may._

"Let's finish this. I'm impatient." A cold voice said. Masculine. Smooth.

"You're starting to sound like someone I know, Itachi!" A second voice said, barking out a laugh. "But yeah, I kinda agree. It was rather boring getting in here though, I was hoping to have a bit more...fun." A sadistic smile spread across the blue mans face.

"Kisame," the first man who had spoken simply grunted this response as a short warning. He stepped into the room in an almost ghostly, yet elegant manner. Red eyes slid from his partner to his target. Back against the wall, the woman they were searching for was laying on the floor. She was bound, an obvious sign of her captivity aside from her tattered clothing that all the other prisoners had worn. Her skin was pale from malnutrition. She looked ordinary enough, with long brown hair framing her face. Dirty, but ordinary. By far the most interesting feature was the seal of red paper spread across her mouth. Words scrawled across her face in black ink in a rudimentary 'x.' The girl made no movement and her eyes were closed shut. Itachi vaguely wondered if she was unconscious as he stepped closer, but quickly dismissed the idea as her eyes steadily slid open to meet his own.

Miyu felt her heart skip a beat when she saw the men in front of her. She had a hard time believing that there were only two that managed to get through the hidden facility and seeing the two in front of her made it only harder to believe.

_Not even a scratch..._ Miyu thought in disbelief.

"Miyu Kotori." Itachi stated, seeking validation of the woman's identity. The woman seemed to flinch at the sound of his voice, recognition flashing across her eyes. She slowly nodded. It had been a long time since someone had called her that instead of a series of numbers. With an expressionless face, Itachi gave a curt nod to his partner, and Kisame bent down to unbind her. With a snap, the shackles around her wrist and ankles fell to the floor. Just like that. It seemed unreal that these men speckled in blood had relieved her constant suffering so simply.

Now freed, Miyu seemed to know better then to flee. She shifted to sit up, her body screaming due to the stiffness of her muscles. She kept her gray eyes focused on the two men standing in front of her. She didn't let them leave her sight. She analyzed them as she silently rubbed her sore wrist, savoring the slow warm feeling of her chakra filling back into her body. Both men wore the same black cloaks with red swirls of a cloud outlined in white. They looked menacing and her senses told her that they were dangerous. Was it really only these two men that destroyed the place of her captivity so quickly? What did they want with her? _It doesn't matter, _she reminded herself harshly, knowing she didn't have the strength to fight back anyways. What they had in store couldn't be worse than what she had experienced as prisoner in the dark dungeon.

"You need to come with us." The man on the left had finally spoken after a few tense moments. He was tall and strongly resembled that of a shark. "Two choices. You can come willing or we can take you in pieces. Not that you're in any shape to fight or run." He chuckled the last part. He grinned, with pointed teeth, hands placed on the weapon on his back threateningly to show he meant what he had said. A trail of blood disappeared behind the odd mans back on the hilt of the sword.

_Anything to get out of this place! _Miyu screamed inside her head nodding to the two rescuers eagerly.

"Smart shrimp," Kisame laughed as if he knew what she was thinking and gave her a toothy grin. The grin reassured her and she tried to stand up quickly to leave. But her head spun from the fast movement. Her knees shook. Malnutrition over her time imprisoned had definitely weakened her. Time spent here had not been kind and had taken quite a toll on her.

"C'mon, we don't have all day." He mused, reaching forward. His muscular arm easily wound around the woman's waist. Her eyes flew open as she was hoisted over the man's shoulder, a small squeal emitting from beneath the seal on her mouth. Miyu felt the shaking of his shoulders that came with another rumble of laughter as the blue skinned man began to walk out of her cell. "I won't drop ya!"

Miyu closed as a rush of emotions crammed themselves inside her brain. She was overjoyed at leaving. Worried and scared that everything wasn't actually happening and she was actually dreaming or under some jutsu. Apprehensive for the future to come. But most of all, there was an overwhelming sense of relief.

"Itachi, you comin'?" Kisame stopped for a second when he noticed his partner hadn't moved.

Curious, Miyu opened her eyes again to peer back inside the small prison that had been her home for so long. She took in his form as he stood in the spot where she had once been laying. He was tall, not as tall the shark-man, and stood with perfect posture. Raven black hair was pulled into a ponytail and she could see a headband across his forehead. She couldn't see most of his face though, as part of the robe he wore obscured it. What intrigued her the most though was the stunning red of his eyes. They were hard and cold but seemed to swim in emotion nonetheless.

_How pretty..._

"Ah." He answered.

Before Miyu could admire any more, the man closed his eyes and turned and easily walked past her on the shark man's shoulder and out of her view. Kisame grinned and followed.

With their target secured, the two Akatsuki members began to make their way out of the base. Miyu watched with emotionless eyes at the dead bodies on the ground as she was carried through the facility. She recognized a few of them as her torturers, their glazed eyes staring into nothing. Body parts seemed to be scattered across the floor, kunai discarded haphazardly on the floor. Blood painted the walls and the ceiling in an oddly appealing scarlet. It was a bloodbath. A massacre. There hadn't been much of a struggle, her two saviors were untouched and lackadaisical. Miyu silently consented her approval of the scene before her. After all, they had deserved it. All she felt towards them was a smug satisfaction of their fate.

But soon something else drew her attention away. It was something she hadn't had the pleasure of hearing since she was thrown in that underground jail. And as they walked the sound grew louder. It was the sound of the wind. Birds chirping. She was outside.

Outside.

Sights the woman had not seen for years were before her and she drank in the colors eagerly with her eyes wide open. The world passed before her. The sky was just turning past dawn and turning a light shade of blue. It wasn't brown, white, gray, or black. It was blue. And the grass was yellow and green. There were patches of pink and orange flowers. Colors began to blur and mix as tears filled her eyes. She was overwhelmed with happiness, and choked down a sob from underneath the red tape across her mouth. She was so happy and for awhile, she just cried. Itachi and Kisame made no comment about it, just exchanged a look and let the woman cry while they carried on walking.

Eventually, Miyu tired herself out. Now, the sway of Kisame's gate was lulling her to sleep. The woman felt so peaceful, and for once, safe. She tried desperately to keep her eyes open to watch her surroundings and her saviors, but they were slowly closing. _I don't know who these men are or why they came to get me...but right now, I owe them everything. _Things faded to black as sleep finally overcame her.


	2. Chapter 2

"Who the fuck is that?" Loud.

"What does it look like, hmm?" Sarcastic.

"Obviously the target of the mission." Annoyed.

"Obviously!" Amused.

A flurry of voices slowly began to trickle into the once unconscious kunoichi's ear. She stirred, eyes blinking open., the grogginess of sleep leaving slowly.

"Shut the fuck up, okay?"

"Make me, hmmm!"

"Stop bickering! You two are so childish."

"Irritating..."

She couldn't see anything, the room was dark. She blinked again, turning her head to the side where she assumed the source of the voices were. Who were they? How many people were there? It was difficult to pinpoint. Their voices bounced and echoed against the walls that surrounded her.

"Will you guys just be quiet?!"

"He fucking started it. I swear to Jashin I'll rip him-"

"Hidan!"

The floor beneath her was hard. She laid on the ground and felt the loose dirt move as she slightly shifted her weight. The rubble underneath and the lack of light was something she knew all too well. She was in another underground cave somewhere.

Panic tore through the girls mind. _No, no, no! Was it all a dream?! _A sheen of sweat broke out on her face as she tried to make sense of everything, sitting up, frantic to confirm her situation. She desperately wanted it to not be a dream and just the idea that everything was a figment of her imagination made her stomach drop.

"She's awake."

The bickering died down and it became quiet. Six sets of eyes turned to her. She grew uncomfortable and drew her legs to her chest, lips forming a thin apprehensive line under the seal across her mouth. She felt somewhat intimidated. There were no bars between her and the unknown voices, but she still wore the same dirty shorts and tank top that labeled her as a 'research subject'. Six against one did not leave her with very good odds… especially if this was that hell hole. But Miyu didn't recognize any of the voices she'd heard so far. So what had actually happened? Where was she? She blinked again rapidly, trying to get her eyes to adjust to the dim lighting, wanting to confirm the situation around her as fast as possible.

"What took you so long girl?" A voice spoke again and her gray eyes shifted to the source. It was the shark-man that she remembered that was speaking. He was casually walking closer to her. She would recognize him anywhere, that lumbering presence.

_It was real! It really did happen. _The anxiety that was tightening her chest loosened. She confirmed that there was no added weight of shackles around her wrist by cautiously sitting up into a sitting position. The distinctive snapping echoed in her mind as she remembered the moment the two men broke her restraints. _Wait, then where's..._Her gaze wondered, catching sight of the red eyes of the man she was seeking. Itachi was not far away, silently watching from behind Kisame. Both her rescuers were here. Relief flowed through her body, her muscles relaxing. Something inside her wanted to go to them, but before she could move, another deep voice cut through.

"The fuck is up with that?!" Miyu's eyes flashed over and a tall man with silvery slicked back hair took a step forward. He approached Miyu quickly, his long legs making the task easy. Grinning from ear to ear he bent his knees to get level with the woman sitting on the ground. The walls felt like they were closing in on her, any sense of comfort her rescuers had given her gone in a second. In a flash, his hand shot forward. Miyu flinched away, but he grabbed hold of the red seal on Miyu's lips. "Get a load of this! What the fuck?!" The silver man was laughing, fuchsia eyes alight in humor, as he tugged the seal.

_I hate this guy._ He made her feel uncomfortable. The way his eyes looked at her reminded her of **them**.

"You know Hidan...that's probably sealed for a reason, hmm?" A man with blonde hair tied in a high pony-tail approached next, long bangs covering one of his eyes. With Miyu's eyes finally getting adjusted to the light, she took the opportunity to glance at those in the room with her. She began analyzing her situation. There was shark-boy, red eyes, blondie, potty mouth... Her eyes flickered to the back of the cave where the only two people that hadn't approached her stood. They looked uninterested. One was covered nearly head to toe in clothing, the other looking very...wide.

_Wait... _Miyu's eyes skimmed over the group of people again. _They're all wearing the same cloak? Are these guys all friends?_

The silver man she assumed was named Hidan began speaking again. "So what? What's she gonna do," he laughed loudly, the sound bouncing around the room, "kill me?!"

"I wish someone would, hm, that joke is getting old." The blonde rolled his eyes.

"What'd you say?!"

"You heard me, hm!" The blonde crossed his arms and looked away.

"Eh?! You wanna die?!"

_Okay, so maybe not friends_.

"Deidara," a new voice spoke up interrupting their childish bickering, deeper than the previous ones, "don't keep me waiting."

"Hai, hai, hm," The blonde responded to the voice that came from the short and wide man in the back. Deidara turned away from Hidan, which only seemed to make the man more irritated, and closed the remaining distance between himself and Miyu. He must have seen the look of confusion on the young woman's face because he crouched in front of her and offered her a wide grin. He raised his hands to perform a hand sign. "Just sit there, yeah?"

Before she had time to question what he was doing, Miyu's face began to glow, illuminating the dark cave. The tape across her mouth was being unsealed. She winced as the seal was being lifted, once again bewildered by the amount of power being demonstrated before her. It took 5 people to hold her down and seal that. Again, so simply, she was free. The red paper once forced across her mouth now fluttered to the ground uselessly. She sucked in a deep breath through her mouth, a sense of satisfaction filling her.

"I..." Miyu opened her mouth hesitantly to talk. "T-thank you." She was not stuttering in fear or nervousness. It had simply been months, years maybe, since she was allowed to speak freely. Forming words in her mouth felt weird. She had become so unaccustomed to the action that her face betrayed her sense of strangeness. It seemed almost abnormal.

"Hm!" The blonde just grunted and gave her a cocky smirk.

"Thank Jashin you're not already dead." Hidan smiled wickedly at Miyu.

"If you wanted me dead, I would be." Miyu shot back instinctively, eyes glaring. I guess talking was only natural if you had something to say, especially to one whom you didn't like. Deidara chuckled under his breath in amusement. Hidan didn't seem to share the same sentiment though, his smile turning into a scowl. His arms reached under the cloak.

"You bit-"

"Hidan." Red eyes flashed to meet fuchsia. An unspoken conversation passed between Hidan and Itachi, the air tense. The others in the room watched silently as the two men held eye contact, waiting for what might happen next.

"Tch...Whatever." Hidan stood up and turned on his heel, stalking off toward the two men still remaining in the back. He mumbled something about sacrificing the Uchiha as he went, shoving his hands into his pockets.

Ignoring the Jashinist, Itachi looked back down to Miyu whom was still seated on the ground. "Deidara," he spoke smoothly, "take her to Leader now that she's awake." He seemed distant, uninterested. Miyu felt a pang in her chest. She wondered why he rescued her if he didn't seem to have even the faintest interest in her. He hadn't moved from when she had first spotted him.

"Fine." Deidara bite the response out, voice tense. He didn't like Itachi ordering him around. Nevertheless though, the blonde from earlier stepped forward, his visible eye looking down at the girl. "Can you stand or not, hmm?"

"Mm…" Miyu was well aware of the answer, but she tried to stand up anyways, not wanting to seem weak amongst these powerful shinobi. But her weak body made her struggle nonetheless.

"Just let me carry you, hm," he grunted, holding out his arms and taking a step closer to her.

"I'm okay."

"Really?" Deidara peered at the woman's face and she looked away.

"Yes."

"You know, you're pretty stubborn, hm." He didn't wait for a response, and scooped her into his arms.

"H-hey!" Miyu scowled to herself, angry, as he carried her in his arms in a way some people would describe as bridal style. She hid the blush that was forming on her cheeks with her hands. _This is so embarrassing! Damn people always doing what they want..._

"Well then," Deidara hummed to the other men in the room, "later." He turned away from the others and began to move away from them. It only took a couple minutes before he was down a tunnel and out of sight from everyone else. Deidara was smiling to himself, his visible blue eye looking down at the girl. Miyu saw him looking down at her through her fingers, so she removed her hands to give him a defiant stare of disapproval. Deidara just continued grinning at her. She decided she wanted to punch him in the face.

_How did I ever let myself become this pathetic? _Miyu chastised herself, thinking of the time when she was once a proud kunoichi. She remembered when she used to train and go on missions when she was younger.

"I don't think you're weak, just so you know, hmm." Deidara's deep voice broke her thoughts. Miyu jumped at the sound of his voice. Apparently he had noticed her sulking and read her mind.

"I don't think that" She retorted, perhaps just a little too quickly.

"Oh?" Deidara questioned, his visible eyebrow arched upwards.

"Yes. This is only temporary. I know I'm not weak. I was just put in a bad situation."

"Bad situation, hm?"

Miyu looked down and away as she responded with, "everyone has a weakness."

"Ah."

They continued the rest of their walk in silence, only the soft steps of Deidara could be heard echoing against the rock walls around her. Soon they approached a shadowy figure. Miyu peered into the darkness only to see the figures back. He slowly held up his empty hand, a signal for Deidara to stop. As if on command, Deidara bent down and placed Miyu on the ground as soft as he could manage. Her legs were shaky but she managed to stand. She whispered her thanks to him, still annoyed with him, but thanked him nonetheless. With a small smile, he turned away. Miyu watched as he dissipated back into the shadows from whence he came, leaving her alone with the man.

Deidara out of sight, Miyu turned her attention back to the figure in front of her. Being left alone with yet another stranger made her nervous. But everything had been okay...so far. But her body still tensed itself into fight or flight mode as he turned around. The man began to approach slowly and she soaked in the details of this strange looking man. He was tall and wore the now familiar coat, one of his hands holding an envelope. Orange spiky hair was almost odd enough to draw her eyes away from his own eyes. They were ringed and peculiar, yet oddly stunning and pretty. Spikes and piercings seemed to cover his skin, giving him an edgy and dangerous appearance. The way he held his gaze though...it seemed like he commanded respect. He exuded pressure.

"Miyu Kotori." Came his modulated and gruff voice.

"What of it?" Miyu narrowed her eyes at the man. Just because she wasn't in the facility anymore and her seal had been released doesn't mean she completely trusted these people. She was on edge, her heart racing.

"It is good you have not lost your passion."

"What do you mean?"

"Miyu Kotori," the man repeated again, ignoring her, "an only child. Became a chunin at age 12, Anbu by 14."

"How do you-" Miyu began to question him but stopped mid sentence when he stepped forward. His hand reached forward and offered her the envelope that she had seen earlier. Miyu extended her arm to take it. She glanced back up to look at him in confusion, but he only nodded in response. Curiosity overcoming her, she lifted the cover. Her gray eyes skimmed over the image and the words of the contents inside.

His words continued, echoing the words on the papers she held in front of her. "Disappeared in suspicious circumstances when she was 15, presumed dead."

"Where did you get this information?" With her brow furrowed, she looked back up at the man.

"My organization is very good at gathering intel."

"I see that." Miyu agreed quietly, absently thumbing through the papers in her hands. Every piece of paper had more information about her. And then it clicked. Her rescue. Hidan's aggression towards her only to be stopped from causing her harm. 'Leader.' Deidara's dismissal. Itachi's interference despite being seemingly uninterested. "I suppose I have you to thank for my freedom then." Miyu commented begrudgingly.

"Smart girl. I am Pein." The man spoke, briefly introducing himself. His voice was as deep as the other men and it sent a shiver down her spine.

"Why?" Miyu found herself asking the man before her.

"I like to know about my members."

"Members?"

"Yes. Miyu Kotori, I would like you to join my organization, Akatsuki."

"Why?" Her gray eyes looked wary, but interested.

_A good sign, _Pein noted. The man gestured to the envelope in her hands. The papers were starting to slide out of the folder, pages peaking out on the side. "You haven't found the information that you were looking for, have you?"

"No." She said, her breath barely above a whisper. She looked down at them and felt a quelling in her chest. The desire for the knowledge the papers in front of her had not been able to provide. Miyu looked back up at the man into his strange eyes, gaze intense. The data below held many things about her, but not the information she wanted.

"Joining could be beneficial for the both of us."

"So you help me find the info I need...and what would I need to do? What do you need me for?"

"To fulfill missions. Help Akatsuki realize it's goal."

"And what is your goal?"

"...will you join us Miyu Kotori?"

_It doesn't look like he's going to tell me. _Miyu thought after her question was met with a few moments of silence, then skipped over nonchalantly. His ringed eyes never left hers though, his presence just as intimidating as it had been when she first saw him. She stifled a sigh. _Well it's not like I have any other options. I can't go back home. They think I'm dead. And that night… _She thought back to the night that had begun the era of hell she had been through, an anger rising inside her. The enemy had known too much, been too prepared. She needed to get to the bottom of it. _Besides, I know how these things work. I doubt he'd just let me walk out of here if I said no. I'm weak right now. _She let her gaze fall over the man again, scanning him up and down with a new respect for his charisma. _He's led me to believe I have a choice, when in reality, I don't._

"I will." Miyu replied.

"Good. I'm glad this was easy. Konan." As if the name had summoned them, paper began fluttering in the air. Once quite a few had appeared, the papers began to come together, taking on the form of a young woman. She had shorter blue hair that ended above her shoulders and strangely warm amber eyes. Below her lip was a single piercing. Now fully materialized, Konan gave Pein a questioning look. His hard stare never wearing from his face, Pein turned his head to the woman that had appeared. "She has agreed."

"Hai." The sound of her voice was light and airy, a huge contrast to the men that Miyu had seen so far. Without saying another word, the woman extended her arm to offer Miyu an Akatsuki cloak.

"Thank you." Miyu reached out and took it into her arms, a warm feeling swelling in her chest thanking Konan politely. She immediately shook the folded cloak open, pulling it around her shoulders. Relief flashed across the woman's face with a small smile. _It's long-sleeved! I'm never taking this off. Plus there's another girl here._

"Konan will be in charge of recovering your health. We need you in fighting form as soon as possible." Pein stated and Konan nodded silently as if to confirm his words. Without another word, he turned away and proceeded to walk back into the shadows.

As Miyu watched his form retreat into the dark, there was a nagging in her brain that made her want to say something else to him. A comment of gratitude perhaps, something to show her thanks for releasing her from that prison. Something to show her appreciation. But another emotion was more powerful, one that made her bite her tongue and just quietly watch as he disappeared. She didn't trust all these people. Not yet.


End file.
